Another group of up to 100 illegal immigrants has been caught trying to get into Britain through the Channel Tunnel, Eurotunnel said today.

Passenger services through the tunnel were delayed for several hours and freight services were suspended overnight after the group was caught inside the Eurotunnel compound at Coquelle, north of Calais, at around 9.45pm last night, a spokeswoman for the company said.

The attempt came as a newspaper report claimed Home Secretary David Blunkett had asked the French government to shut down the nearby Red Cross camp at Sangatte, where it is believed the group was from.

Forty-four Afghans were found trying to walk through the tunnel on Wednesday.read more